Once considered just a novel feature that was prone to hilarious gaffes, Voice search has gone mainstream in 2018. Google has long been championing the importance of voice but only now does it really feel that it is gaining traction in our everyday lives. Google has revealed that 20 percent of searches via its mobile app and on Android devices are now conducted via voice search. When you consider the billions of searches carried out every day that is a big number.
And that’s just from Google’s side of the fence. Once you take into consideration the expanding use of Siri & Cortana and that Amazon’s Alexa is now featuring highly on kids Christmas lists, it would seem that Voice has well and truly landed.
So why now?
There are a few reasons for this but aside from the maturing technology which is now far more accurate, society is slowly coming around to accepting the convenience outweighs feeling a little silly talking to a robot.
How does this impact your website?
As more and more people search with their voices rather than their fingers the language of their search is changing. This means that Search Optimisation of your website should reflect this. People use more natural language with voice search so you should make sure your site includes well written and engaging content for your readers. Adding natural language to your site will reap rewards.
For example, when performing a search, a typed query might look like this “best smartphone 2018”. People type this way because it is efficient and requires less keystrokes to complete. When using voice search they are more likely to say “What is the best smartphone out right now?” The two queries are looking for the same answers, but the end results could vary dramatically.
So what to do?
Don’t panic, your website doesn’t need rebuilding but it is important to understand that subtle changes may be require to your content and tone to perform well with voice search queiries. Long-Tail keywords will increase in importance, sites such as AnswerThePublic.com can provide insight about the sort of questions people are asking. Answer those questions with your website content and you will be well on your way to SEO success.
What else can I do?
One of the most important things you can do to improve your visibility for voice search is to claim your business on Google My Business, or Google Maps. These listings are vital as Google will have confirmed data on your business and its location to display to mobile users. Make sure this information is accurate and kept up to date. You do not want to give search engines any misleading data, or provide the wrong answers about your business.